Longline

The fishery being assessed is Atlantic Ocean tuna and swordfish longline fishery, which is managed by the company Ying Sheng Hsiang, Taiwan. The fishery targets Atlantic Ocean albacore (Thunnus alalunga) tuna, bigeye (T. obesus), yellowfin (T. albacares) tunas, and swordfish (Xiphias gladius). There are 9 pelagic longline vessels flagged to China and Namibia and fish exclusively on the high seas in the Atlantic. The fishery is managed regionally by the International Commission for the Conservation of Atlantic Tunas (ICCAT) in the Atlantic Ocean.

Southern Hake (Merluccius australis) is a demersal species that inhabits the southern-austral distribution in Chile (from latitude 47° 28´6” to latitude 57°). This species has been classified as overexploited and subject to overfishing since 2013. The annual global quota is divided into 60% for artisanal fishing (using longlines) and 40% for industrial fishing (trawl and longline). Access to new fishing agents is restricted, and there is a reproductive closure in August, along with restrictions on fishing gear.

In practice, due to quota transfer mechanisms, artisanal fishing is responsible for approximately 25% of the total catch.

The management of this fishery falls under the purview of the Undersecretariat of Fisheries and Aquaculture (SUBPESCA). They collaborate with the Scientific and Technical Committee for Demersal Resources in the Southern Austral Zone. Together, they define the fishery status, establish biological reference points, recommend the range for setting the global quota, design management measures, and create management plans.

Since 2014, the Southern Hake Management Committee has operated. Its primary role is to serve as an advisory and consulting body for fisheries authorities. Additionally, the committee develops the corresponding fishery management plan. It includes representatives from the artisanal, industrial, and processing sectors, as well as government officials.

In 2023, approximately 17,800 tons of Southern Hake were landed. Among these, the Artisanal Fishermen Federation of Hualaihue captured around 1,900 tons, representing about 9% of the total landings and 33% of effective artisanal landings (excluding quota transfers from artisanal to industrial sectors).

The catches are made using midwater longlines in inland waters. Fishing trips typically last up to 2 days and occur on vessels with a maximum length of 12 meters.

The harvested fish are primarily destined for direct human consumption products in export markets. On average, around 10,000 tons of finished product are exported annually, valued at approximately $50 million. Spain is the main destination, accounting for 90% of exports, with roughly 30% in fresh chilled volume and the remaining 70% in frozen form.

Hilo Fish Company Inc. & Comercio de Pescados Villa Imp. E Expt. Ltda. have combined their industry knowledge and resources to implement regional strategies to improve the sustainability of their target species here in Brazil.   Areas of concentration include, but are not limited to, improving fisheries data quality, reducing impacts of non-target species interactions, and increasing shared information between fisheries stakeholders. 

In 2023, a pre-assessment was completed using MSC Fisheries Standard v2.01 to identify all environmental indicators for the South Atlantic swordfish stock.  To address the areas of sustainability vulnerability in the Brazilian fishery, Hilo Fish Company Inc. and Comercio de Pescados Villa Imp. E Expt. Ltda. have put together a multidisciplinary team of Brazilian fisheries representatives and regional experts to develop a basic FIP for the swordfish (Xiphias gladius) landed by longline in the UoA.  This FIP represents 2 supply chain companies, 1 national fishing collective and 72 Brazil-flagged vessels operating out of the ports of Itajaí in Santa Catarina, Itaipava in Espíito Santo, and Rio Grande in Rio Grande do Sul.  

Due to the highly migratory nature of the Southwest Atlantic swordfish, the stock is governed at the highest level by the International Convention for the Conservation of Atlantic Tunas (ICCAT) RFMO, and the stock is governed at the national level by both the Brazilian Ministry of Fisheries & Aquaculture (MPA) and the Brazilian Ministry of Environment and Climate Change (MMA).

Based on the pre-assessment (see the pre-assessment Doc.) for the South Atlantic swordfish stock conducted in 2023, one of the Performance Indicators (PIs) was scored so that the fishery would fail under the MSC v2.01 assessment (SG<60) and four of the PIs required conditions for improvement (SG 60-79).  The objective of this FIP is to increase the PIs (of scores <60 or 60-79) to SG>80.  Efforts to achieve these scores will be undertaken by actions which improve shared swordfish (Xiphias gladius) stock management in the South Atlantic through better reporting and improved data quality, reduction of shark by-catch mortality, and improvements to ETP species interactions in the MoU.

The fishery is targeting the Indian Ocean stocks of four species of tuna (albacore (Thunnus alalunga), yellowfin (Thunnus albacares), bigeye (Thunnus obesus), skipjack (Katsuwonus pelamis)). The pelagic longline vessels are flagged to China, Taiwan and Seychelles. They fish on the high seas and the Mauritius and Seychelles EEZs. The fishery is managed regionally by the Indian Ocean Fisheries Commission.